The ocean and the climate system
Delécluse, Pascale
This chapter discusses the behavior of the ocean and the way in which it could influence the evolution of the climate by its particular dynamics and rhythm. The combination of long series of temperature measurements on the ground, sea and more recently from space, allows us to plot a global distribution of the changes in surface temperature. Because of weight and thermal inertia, oceans leave a very special mark on changes in the climate. To understand the behavior of the climate system, it is necessary to contrast the different compartments that contribute to it and in particular to analyze the two large fluids that, through their continual motion, contribute to regulate the disparities in energy. In tropical regions, the ocean's dynamics respond rapidly to disturbances since the equatorial ocean, because of its sharp thermocline close to the surface and the cancellation of the Coriolis parameter, reacts as a wave guide.
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